What gets measured gets done. 10 principles of inspection.

2008 sees the (proposed) establishment of just four key inspectorates.

The Inspectorates will be for:

• Local Services
• Health and Social Care
• Children and Young People
• Justice, Community Safety & Custody

Perhaps a good time then to review the Government's 10 Principles of Inspection. (Government's Policy on Inspection in the Public Service: July 2003)Not least because the policy makes it clear that 'Inspectorates should ensure that they have the capacity to work together on cross-cutting issues' and there will be plenty of those.

Principles (edited by me for brevity)

1. The purpose of improvement. There should be an explicit concern on the part of inspectors to contribute to the improvement of the service being inspected.

2. A focus on outcomes, which means considering service delivery to the end users of the services rather than concentrating on internal management arrangements.

3. A user perspective. Inspection should be delivered with a clear focus on the experience of those for whom the service is provided, as well as on internal management arrangements. Inspection should encourage innovation and diversity and not be solely compliance-based.

4. Proportionate to risk. Over time, inspectors should modify the extent of future inspection according to the quality of performance by the service provider. For example, good performers should undergo less inspection, so that resources are concentrated on areas of greatest risk.

5. Inspectors should encourage rigorous self-assessment by managers. Inspectors should challenge the outcomes of managers’ self-assessments, take them into account in the inspection process, and provide a comparative benchmark.

6. Inspectors should use impartial evidence. Evidence, whether quantitative or qualitative, should be validated and credible.

7. Inspectors should disclose the criteria they use to form judgments.

8. Inspectors should be open about their processes, willing to take any complaints seriously, and able to demonstrate a robust quality assurance process.

9. Inspectors should have regard to value for money, their own included

10. Inspectors should continually learn from experience.

I continually highlight to colleagues on the courses I run, the importance of the customer experience. The need to recognise that great and tidy processes aren't of themselves the goal. That providing a better service that contributes to successful outcomes has more merit.

If that needed reinforcing, then re-reading points 2 & 3 in the principles above should do it.